Ray Crooke
Encyclopedia
Ray Crooke is an Australian artist born in Melbourne
. He won the Archibald Prize
in 1969 with a portrait of George Johnston
.
His painting The Offering (1971) is in the Vatican Museum collection. Many of his works are in Australian galleries. He is known for serene views of Islander people and ocean landscapes, many of which are based on the art of Gauguin. He spent time in Townsville, Cape York
and other parts of northern Australia during the Second World War. Returning from the Second World War, he enrolled in Art School at Swinburne University of Technology
and later travelled to New Guinea
, Tahiti
and Fiji
. While a portrait
of his won the Archibald Prize
in 1969, he is not known usually for portrait painting. He has received an Order of Australia medal.
"North of Capricorn" was an Australian touring retrospective exhibition in 1997 organised by the Perc Tucker Regional Gallery (Townsville, Queensland, Australia) initiated and curated by Grafico Topico's writer and curator Sue Smith. Information about the exhibition and tour can be found at http://www.grafico-qld.com/content/ray-crooke
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
. He won the Archibald Prize
Archibald Prize
The Archibald Prize is regarded as the most important portraiture prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after a bequest from J. F. Archibald, the editor of The Bulletin who died in 1919...
in 1969 with a portrait of George Johnston
George Johnston
George Norman Johnston was a politician elected to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta for the first time in 1921, He served as Speaker of the Alberta Legislature from 1921 to 1936. He was defeated in 1935 when Social Credit swept to power...
.
His painting The Offering (1971) is in the Vatican Museum collection. Many of his works are in Australian galleries. He is known for serene views of Islander people and ocean landscapes, many of which are based on the art of Gauguin. He spent time in Townsville, Cape York
Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula is a large remote peninsula located in Far North Queensland at the tip of the state of Queensland, Australia, the largest unspoilt wilderness in northern Australia and one of the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth...
and other parts of northern Australia during the Second World War. Returning from the Second World War, he enrolled in Art School at Swinburne University of Technology
Swinburne University of Technology
Swinburne University of Technology is an Australian public dual sector university based in Melbourne, Victoria. The institution was founded by the Honourable George Swinburne in 1908 and achieved university status in June 1992...
and later travelled to New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
and Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
. While a portrait
Portrait
thumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
of his won the Archibald Prize
Archibald Prize
The Archibald Prize is regarded as the most important portraiture prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after a bequest from J. F. Archibald, the editor of The Bulletin who died in 1919...
in 1969, he is not known usually for portrait painting. He has received an Order of Australia medal.
"North of Capricorn" was an Australian touring retrospective exhibition in 1997 organised by the Perc Tucker Regional Gallery (Townsville, Queensland, Australia) initiated and curated by Grafico Topico's writer and curator Sue Smith. Information about the exhibition and tour can be found at http://www.grafico-qld.com/content/ray-crooke